Seventh Heaven
by cleris4ever
Summary: After learning of Cloud and Aeris's engagement Tifa feels depressed. Will an enemy be the one to pull her out of her slump? One of three prologues for Another Life, Another Story. Begins following An Angel's Love Chapter 4.
1. Shattered First Impressions

_**Seventh Heaven**_

_**Chapter One**_

**Shattered First Impressions**

She couldn't believe it. Cloud proposed to Aeris. It's not that they were engaged that stunned her, it's that Cloud actually asked Aeris to marry him. She thought of how she treated him, always scolding him like he was her child, maybe that's what drove him into the arms of another woman.

"Tifa? Are you okay?" the little girl asked the woman.

"Yeah," Tifa said through the tears. "I'm fine."

"Really? You're crying. I don't think it's happy crying though," the girl said.

"I'm fine Marlene, really."

In reality, Tifa wasn't fine. She felt like someone stabbed her stomach with a knife, and twisted it around a few times. She thought it was unfair. She knew him longer, why would he choose a girl he just met a few months ago? Maybe it was because she knew him longer that he didn't pick her. Maybe he saw her as a friend for too long that it would have been awkward for him to take their relationship to the next level.

Tifa and Marlene finally arrived back at Seventh Heaven. When they entered the bar Barret was there to greet them. Barret is Tifa's good friend; after Cloud rejected her Barret was always there to listen to what she had to say. He was loyal and he didn't judge her at all. Just as Barret tucked Marlene in that night the door to the bar opened. In walked a young man with golden hair wearing a white suit. Tifa recognized the man right away. President Rufus ShinRa of the ShinRa Electric Company was standing in her bar.

Barret was enraged. He hated anything related to ShinRa. It's thanks to ShinRa that Barret lost his arm, and his wife. He could never forgive ShinRa for what they did.

"Sorry buddy but we're closed!" Barret said angrily.

"Well the sign says you're open," Rufus answered.

"We don't serve your kind buddy boy!"

"Really? Even if I have all this gil that I want to spend on a nice drink."

"Let him have a drink." Tifa called out from behind the counter.

"Why are you letting him have a drink?" Barret asked angrily. "He's the enemy!"

"He said he had a lot of gil."

"I don't want that gil! It's tainted! It was touched by that mako-head's grimy paws!"

"Gil is gil Barret. I'll give him a drink, and we'll never see him again."

"Shit, fine." Barret said as he left the room in a huff.

"You seem pretty down," Rufus said as he approached the counter.

"It's none of your business!" Tifa snapped as she poured Rufus a drink.

"Let me guess…Chocobo-Head turned you down in favor of the Ancient? I'm right aren't I?"

"How did you know?" Tifa asked blushing.

"How can you not?" said Rufus. "The two are always holding hands and kissing each other on the cheek." He paused for a second then he spoke again, "still I don't know why he didn't give you a chance, I mean you're beautiful."

"He said I try too hard. He said that I was always on his ass. He…wait did you just say I was beautiful?"

"Yeah, forget Chocobo-Head. You deserve someone who loves everything about you, including your flaws."

Tifa couldn't believe that Rufus was being so nice to her. He was her enemy, but what he said just made her happier than she was for a long time. She was so happy that she accidentally spilled Rufus' drink all over his white suit.

"I'm so sorry!" she apologized. Tifa felt horrible, here she was having a nice conversation, and all of a sudden she just spills an expensive drink all over Rufus' expensive suit. She could feel her happiness flying away from her. It wouldn't be all that bad if she had a shirt she could give him, but since the only man living at the bar was Barret she was in a no-win situation.

"It's no big deal, I can always buy another one," he said back. Tifa breathed a sigh of relief; at least he was being nice about it.

The two continued talking for a little while longer. Before either of them knew it Tifa invited Rufus to join her behind the counter. It didn't take long for them to start kissing.

Marlene came up the elevator yawning, and rubbing her eyes.

"Tifa?" she asked yawning. "Can I have a glass of water?"

Before Tifa could answer Marlene shrieked:

"Papa! A strange man's hurting Tifa!"

"THAT SON OF A BITCH!" Barret shouted from downstairs.

"Shit. Rufus you better get out of here," Tifa warned. Rufus jumped over the counter and ran towards the door. He barely made it out before Barret came up the elevator and starting shooting at him.

"Tifa! You alright?" Barret asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Tifa said. In fact she was better than fine, she finally had someone show a shred of interest in her after a long time of chasing down a man who she could never have.


	2. Broken Bonds

_**Seventh Heaven**_

_**Chapter Two**_

**Broken Bonds**

After watching Cloud and Aeris drive away into the sunset Tifa saw Rufus about to board his helicopter. She didn't see Barret anywhere so she figured she's go say goodbye. Just before Rufus could get on board Tifa tapped him on the shoulder. They looked into each other's eyes and shared a long passionate kiss. They were so lost in each other that they didn't hear Barret approach.

"Get your grimy mako-paws offa Tifa!" Barret shouted while shooting his gun into the air.

"Barret?!" Tifa shrieked.

"Don't worry Tifa I'm here to save you!" Barret yelled.

"I'm fine Barret!" Tifa screamed. Barret turned to Rufus.

"Next time you hurt Tifa Imma kill you!" Barret warned. After warning Rufus about what he'd do to him Barret walked away. Tifa breathed a sigh of relief once he was out of sight.

"Damn, we got caught," she whined.

"What's his problem?" Rufus asked.

"He lost a lot because of ShinRa. His home, his arm, his wife, you name it he lost it." Tifa explained.

"I see." Rufus said as he boarded the helicopter. As he was flying away Tifa waved goodbye.

"I'm back!" Tifa said as she entered the door to Seventh Heaven.

"Papa! Tifa's home!" Marlene announced.

"Hey Tifa, want me to kick that son of a bitch where the sun don't shine?" Barret asked.

"No need." Tifa replied.

"Oh, I see…you already took care of that." Barret chuckled, "atta girl!"

Tifa didn't answer.

"Are you okay?" Barret asked. But Tifa didn't answer, she just ran into her room. She was tired of living a lie. She didn't like keeping secrets from Barret, they've been comrades for a long time now. But this was a secret she could never tell him. She felt like she was betraying him by going out with the man who was in charge of the thing he despised, the thing she despises. But Rufus is Rufus, he isn't ShinRa itself. Tifa buried her head into her lap contemplating the choices she made.

That night after Barret and Marlene went to bed Tifa snuck out. She would meet Rufus at the Honeybee Inn late at night; it's sort of a tradition that the two of them have. When she reached the inn a girl dressed up in a bee outfit greeted her. The girl led her to the Lover's room where Rufus was waiting for her.

"Sorry I'm late." Tifa said.

"Eh, it's no big deal, I have tomorrow off anyway." Rufus said with a wink. "Here," Rufus held out a dark red slit dress, he signaled Tifa to put it on.

"Don't look." Tifa snapped.

"It's not like I haven't seen you naked before." Rufus teased.

"True but it still makes me feel uncomfortable if you see me naked." Tifa confessed.

The girl in the bee outfit entered the room with a bottle of champagne. She gave Rufus the bottle and left. Rufus began to shake the bottle leading to the cork flying into Tifa's cleavage.

"Sorry." He apologized.

"Eh it's okay," Tifa said, "now we're even."

"Even?" he asked.

"Yeah, remember when I spilled the drink on you?"

"How can I forget…"Rufus said with a smile. Before Rufus could pour Tifa her glass Tifa ran into the bathroom. Rufus had no clue what was going on, he sat pondering what could have happened to make Tifa run out like that. Just as he was about to go look for her Tifa came back into the room.

"Must have been the wedding cake." She said.

"What happened?" Rufus asked.

"I couldn't keep the cake down." Tifa said. "I don't know if I'll have any champagne tonight I think water would be better."

"Okay," Rufus said sympathetically. He signaled for the girl in the bee outfit to bring a pitcher of water. The two of them talked for a while about the wedding and about Barret. Tifa wondered how Barret and Marlene were doing.

Barret walked out of Seventh Heaven and towards Wall Market. He headed straight towards the place Tifa was, the Honey Bee Inn. The same girl in the bee outfit greeted Barret.

"I'm lookin' for someone!" he shouted.

"Do you need help finding them?" the girl asked.

"No need!" Barret said as he walked towards the Group room. Inside he saw a large group of bodybuilders bathing in the same tub, he felt a little uncomfortable watching that. Then he walked towards the top left room. Looking inside made him feel like he was having an acid dream. Next Barret checked the Queen Room, all he saw in there was a dirty play. Finally Barret looked through the keyhole to the Lovers' Room; it was just as he thought.

Barret began shooting at the door to the Lovers' Room. Rufus and Tifa jumped and Tifa quickly grabbed the dark red blanket to cover up. Barret was standing before them; he looked angry steam was coming out of his ears.

"SHINRA!" he shouted.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Rufus asked angrily.

"TIFA!" Barret shouted. "THIS IS WHO YOU WERE SLEEPING WITH HERE?"

"How did you know?" Tifa asked.

"There was a pair of panties in the hallway at the bar that said 'I got pollinated at the Honey Bee Inn' on the ass. They sure as hell weren't mine since I don't wear frilly things, and they sure as hell aren't Marlene's 'cause they were too big. So they were obviously yours!" Barret said.

Tifa's face was red, heck she could feel her entire body turning red.

"I figured you'd be here, after all this is the only place you can get these panties. I didn't know whom you came here with though. Of all the scumbags in the world it had to be this guy! I'd prefer you slept with Hojo before you slept with him!"

"Barret please…" Tifa began to beg.

"I'm going back to the bar to pack your stuff up. I don't want to see you ever again!" Barret yelled as he slammed what was left of the door.

Rufus walked Tifa back to Seventh Heaven. Seeing her stuff waiting outside Tifa burst into tears. Rufus grabbed her things and made a call on his phone. Just then his helicopter landed in front of Tifa.

"I got you into this mess. You can stay with me for a bit." Rufus offered.

"Thank you Rufus." Tifa said smiling through the tears.


	3. Last Night At The Gold Saucer

_**Seventh Heaven**_

_**Chapter Three**_

**Last Night At The Gold Saucer**

Yesterday Rufus brought Tifa to the Gold Saucer; he figured she needed some time to enjoy herself after her blowup with Barret. Tifa was asleep in her bed, Rufus ruffled her hair and she woke up.

"Morning," Tifa said yawning.

"Good morning." Rufus said back. He kissed her on the forehead and walked into the bathroom. Tifa got out of bed and put on a black t-shirt and a pair of shorts. Rufus came out of the bathroom and went outside to make a call as Tifa approached the mirror, her hair was a mess, and Rufus must have ruffled it a little too hard. She just finished brushing her hair as Rufus walked back into their room.

"Can you remember what happened last night?" Rufus asked.

"My memory's a little hazy, I'm still half asleep." Tifa answered.

"Oh, I was hoping you could explain why there's a pile of rice outside our room."

"Let me see!" Tifa yelled as she ran outside.

Rufus wasn't joking. Rice was scattered all around the floor outside their hotel room.

"Do you think it was a prank?" Rufus asked.

"I doubt it, if it was a prank then then it wouldn't be rice." Tifa said. Tifa turned her head; she heard footsteps coming from down the hall. It was Dio the owner of the Gold Saucer.

"There's the happy couple!" he said happily. Tifa and Rufus looked at each other, they were happy, but they didn't know how he knew.

"Hey Dio, do you mind if I asked you a few questions?"

"Not at all," he said.

Dio sat at the table; Rufus was seated across from him.

"So what do you want to ask me?" Dio asked.

"Just wait until Tifa comes out of the bathroom." Rufus said. Tifa walked out of the bathroom, she yawned and took the seat next to Rufus.

"Do you have any idea what happened last night?" Rufus asked.

"Well…you two walked into the park and showed the man at the entrance the lifetime pass." Dio began.

"I meant what happened that caused the large amount of rice outside our room." Rufus clarified.

"Oh I see," Dio said, "well the two of you just got off of the gondola and went towards the event square. By the time you got there, there was this couple getting eloped. After they were done Cait Sith approached the two of you…" Dio told the two.

"You're not saying…" Rufus said horrified.

"Yes, Cait Sith performed a ceremony and you two got eloped." Dio said.

"Wait so that rice…?" Tifa began to ask.

"Cait Sith followed the two of you back to your room and was throwing rice at both of you." Dio told them, "It was quite comical," he said with a chuckle.

"How come we don't remember any of this?" Rufus asked.

"Actually it's coming back to me now." Tifa spoke up. "I remember the gondola ride and I remember Cait Sith marrying us." Tifa confessed.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Rufus asked angrily.

"I wasn't sure if it was a crazy dream I had." Tifa said.

"Well she remembers." Rufus said, "how come I don't?"

"You got drunk off the champagne." Dio said.

"I bet you don't remember getting the tattoo either?" Tifa asked.

"What tattoo?" Rufus asked panicking.

"You got a tattoo on your ass." Tifa giggled.

"What is it? What is it?" Rufus asked panicking even more.

"It says 'Tifa's Bitch.'" Tifa said in a fit of laughter. Rufus ran into the bathroom.

"Did he really get 'Tifa's Bitch' tattooed on his ass?" Dio asked.

"Yup, but there was more." Tifa said still giggling.

"What else did it say?" Dio asked curiously.

"It also says 'I'm a Moogle kupo!'" Tifa burst out in laughter, Dio couldn't help but join in, he never expected that Rufus ShinRa would get an embarrassing tattoo on his rear, as they were laughing uncontrollably Rufus walked back in.

"Remind me to get the tattoos removed." Rufus said trying to keep his composure. "Did anything else happen?" he asked, "Any other tattoos I should know about?"

"No other tattoos, but you did fall off of a chocobo during the chocobo race." Dio said.

"DAMMIT!" Rufus yelled slamming his hand on the table.

"Now if you'll excuse me there's a tournament at battle square." Dio said. He waved goodbye and ran out of the room.

"What are we going to do?" Tifa asked Rufus.

"Well, I guess we could give being a married couple a try, after all my mom's always bugging me about getting a wife." Rufus said with a sigh.

"I guess." Tifa said.

"By the way, how much did you drink last night?" Rufus asked Tifa.

"I just had some water." Tifa said, "Why?"

"No reason, I was wondering if you were hung over too." Rufus said, "You seemed pretty sick last night."

"It was probably the Gondola ride." Tifa speculated.

"Okay…"


	4. Breakfast At Tifa-nee's

_**Seventh Heaven**_

_**Chapter Four**_

**Breakfast At Tifa-nee's**

It's been a few days since Rufus and Tifa got back from their trip to the Gold Saucer. Now that they're home they went back to their old lives, well Rufus did, Barret won't let Tifa set foot near Seventh Heaven after he caught her and Rufus getting it on at the Honey Bee Inn. Thanks to Barret, Tifa is now stuck waiting for Rufus to come home. It wouldn't be all that bad if she had something to do, she isn't able to cook anymore since Rufus already has someone to do that for him.

Rufus came home shortly after the sunset. He opened the door to find Tifa sleeping on the couch.

"You know we have a bed, right?" he asked teasingly. Tifa opened her eyes and let out a loud yawn.

"Sorry Rufus, I'm just bored out of my fucking mind," she answered him.

"How can you be bored?" Rufus asked, "This place has everything!"

"Everything for you." Tifa said with a hint of irritation in her voice, "I'm not exactly a fan of looking down at the slums and yelling 'PEASANTS!'"

"But it's so much fun!" Rufus tried to reassure her.

"What I'm saying is that I miss doing the things I used to do, like cooking." Tifa sighed.

"You cook?" Rufus asked.

"Yes I cook." Tifa said angrily, "of course you wouldn't know that since you never let me in the kitchen." Tifa walked towards the bedroom.

"I don't want you to interfere with the chef's work." Rufus said.

Tifa glared at him, "YOU'RE SLEEPING ON THE COUCH!" she yelled and slammed the door.

Tifa woke up at dawn the next morning. She picked up her cell phone and dialed a number.

"Hello, this is Tifa…the First Lady…anyways, you've been doing such a good job lately why don't you take the day off…aww thank you…bye." Tifa hung up the phone. She snuck into the kitchen and started cooking.

Rufus woke up to the smell of cinnamon. He didn't expect the cook to be here so early.

"That smells great!" he said happily as he walked into the kitchen.

"Glad you think so." Tifa said.

"Tifa? What are you doing in here?" he asked.

"I wanted to give our dear chef the day off." Tifa said in a singsong voice.

"You WHAT?" Rufus yelled.

"I gave her the day off, the poor think is always working so hard I felt she needed a vacation." Tifa smiled.

"Why would you do such a thing?" Rufus asked, his voice trembling.

"I just wanted something to do. If you don't like the food I won't make it for you anymore. Deal?" Tifa said.

"Deal." Rufus agreed.

Rufus sat on the loveseat in the living room. He put on the TV; a chocobo race came on the screen. Remembering his experience at the Gold Saucer he changed the channel. A commercial for some children's card game, he changed it again. Finally a ShinRa Electric Company documentary came on the TV. Rufus smiled and watched it.

"The food is done!" Tifa called over from the other room. Rufus walked into the dining room. In front of him was an array of different foods. Pancakes, eggs, bacon, French toast, waffles, sausages, fruits, and a bunch of different pastries were laid out in front of him.

"You made all of this?" he asked.

"Yup." Tifa said.

"Damn you're good." He stood up and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "What should I try first?" he asked.

"Doesn't matter to me." Tifa answered. Rufus grabbed a plate and put one of everything on it. He grabbed a muffin and put it in his mouth. He couldn't believe what he tasted. He never had anything so good in his life; it was like he just bit into a little piece of heaven.

"OH MY GOD!" he screamed, "I've never had anything this good in my entire life!"

"Glad you like it." Tifa said.

"I LOVE IT!" he shouted as he continued to shove a variety of foods into his mouth. He almost choked a couple of times.

"You should cook more." He said as he ate the last piece of bacon.

"I plan to, but it won't be this much every day."

"Why not?" Rufus asked sadly.

"You'd never finish your breakfast before work." She hugged him from behind, "besides I need a break every now and then.

"Alright."

"But I'll be cooking for the rest of the day." Tifa reassured him.

"JACKPOT!"


End file.
